If two golfers have a game going on a weekend morning, it is very likely a Nassau. The format has been around for generations because it fixes the main problem with a single 18-hole bet: once one side is well ahead, the match goes flat. A Nassau keeps three contests alive at once.
The Nassau golf bet at a glance
- Players: two in singles, or four as two teams of two.
- Bets: front nine, back nine and overall 18, each for the same stake.
- Format: usually match play; stroke play also works.
- Handicaps: strokes on the hardest holes, if the group uses them.
- Add-on: the press, a new bet for the side that falls behind.
- Pace: normal.
A five-dollar Nassau is often written as 5-5-5. A group that wants the full 18 to matter more might play 5-5-10.
Nassau rules, step by step
- Agree the stake for each of the three bets, singles or teams, match or stroke play, and handicap strokes.
- Agree the press rules: when a press can be made, whether it can be declined, and how many are allowed.
- Play the front nine. The side ahead after nine holes wins the front bet; a level match is a push.
- Start the back nine at all square. The overall bet carries on from where it stood after nine.
- Play the back nine. Settle the back bet and the overall bet after 18.
- Settle every press on its own, at the end of the nine or round it was attached to.
The key idea is that the three bets are separate. A side can lose the front, win the back and halve the overall bet, so nobody wins anything except bragging rights.
How the press works
A press is a new bet that begins on the next hole and runs to the end of the bet being pressed. It is usually for the same stake as the original. The side that is two down is normally the one to call it.
Say Player B is two down after five holes of the front nine. B presses. A new front-nine bet starts on the 6th hole and finishes on the 9th. If B wins those four holes, B wins the press, even if B still loses the original front-nine bet.
Groups vary a lot here, so treat these as house rules:
- Automatic press when a side falls two down, so nobody has to ask.
- One down press for groups that like more action.
- Press limits, such as one per nine.
- Pressing the overall bet as well as the nine being played.
A worked example: front nine in match play
Lou and Max play a two-dollar Nassau with automatic presses at two down. Here is how the front nine unfolds.
| Hole | Winner | Main front-nine bet | Press |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lou | Lou 1 up | none |
| 2 | Halved | Lou 1 up | none |
| 3 | Lou | Lou 2 up | Max presses from hole 4 |
| 4 | Max | Lou 1 up | Max 1 up |
| 5 | Halved | Lou 1 up | Max 1 up |
| 6 | Max | All square | Max 2 up |
| 7 | Lou | Lou 1 up | Max 1 up |
| 8 | Halved | Lou 1 up | Max 1 up |
| 9 | Halved | Lou wins 1 up | Max wins 1 up |
The front nine finishes with Lou winning the main bet and Max winning the press, so the two dollars cancel out. Lou is 1 up in the overall bet heading into the back nine, which starts fresh at all square.
When to press, and when not to
A press is a tool, not an obligation. The best time to press is when the holes ahead suit your game: a stretch of short par 4s for a good wedge player, or the stroke holes where you receive a shot. The worst time is straight after a bad run, when the urge to win it all back is strongest.
Remember that the leading side can often press back, or press the overall bet. Two presses running alongside the main bet already means three bets on a single nine. For most friendly games that is plenty, which is why so many groups cap presses at one per nine.
Handicaps in a Nassau
In match play, the higher handicapper receives strokes on the hardest holes on the card. The usual way is to give the difference between the two course handicaps, taken on the holes with the lowest stroke index. A stroke on a hole lets that player win with a net score lower than the opponent’s.
In a four-ball Nassau, each player’s strokes are worked out from the lowest handicap in the group, and the better net ball of each side counts. Many groups play off a reduced allowance in four-ball, which makes the matches closer.
Common variations
- Four-ball Nassau: teams of two, better ball counts.
- Stroke-play Nassau: total scores on each nine and for 18 decide the three bets.
- Different stakes: for example 5-5-10, so the overall counts double.
- Junk: small extras for birdies, sand saves or closest to the pin, added to the totals at the end.
- Settling ties: a push, or a playoff hole for the overall.
A Nassau also runs well alongside a group game. Many foursomes play a team Nassau and Skins across all four players in the same round.
Etiquette and keeping it friendly
Agree every rule on the first tee and write it on the card. Most Nassau arguments come from a press nobody remembers agreeing to. Call presses out loud, and keep the running state of each bet on the card after every hole.
Keep the stakes small. Presses can multiply the number of bets quickly, which is why many groups cap them at one per nine. A two-dollar Nassau with one press each way is a lively game; anything that makes the 18th green tense for the wrong reasons is too much.
Which game to try next
Foursomes who like the team side of a Nassau often try Vegas, which gives every hole bigger swings. Groups that want every player to have a shot at each hole should try Skins or Wolf. Threesomes can find formats that suit them in three-player games, and every game is compared on the golf betting games page.